After finally putting away the Bulls in game six, the Pistons advanced to their fifth straight appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals. Though the series initially appeared to be a washout, the Bulls did finally wake on the tails of a Pistons team which lost focus and showed its arrogance. The inability to close games without the pressure on has hurt this Detroit team in the past, without a sense of urgency, the Pistons often grind to a halt. However in the end, it was the Pistons who were able to turn it on, though they were unable to close until their backs were against the wall. In game six, Rasheed Wallace scored 16 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton knocked down a combined 44 points, and the Pistons out-shot the Bulls 42% to 37%. PJ Brown led the Bulls with 20 points, tying a career playoff high for the veteran; although, Brown scored all of his points in the first half of play.
With a 4-2 series victory, the Pistons will now go on to face LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, who dispatched the New Jersey Nets in six games earlier tonight. If there is one single player who could win a series, it is LeBron James, who averaged 25 points, nearly nine assists, and just over seven rebounds per game in the conference semifinals. However, James’ efforts could be rendered useless without a supporting cast, and his is often inconsistent. Though the Cavs generally play their best basketball against the Pistons, there are nights when it seems that only King James can hit. Historically, the Cavaliers play their best basketball when perimeter players are able to hit their shots from opportunities created by LeBron, who often requires double or triple teams. Players like Pavlovic (11.4 points) and Larry Hughes (15.6 points) are key for the Cavaliers. In the post, Drew Gooden, who averaged ten rebounds and over nine points per game in the second round, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who averaged over 12 points and nine rebounds per contest, are key. A rebounding presence for the Cavaliers can lead to fast breaks and energy — Cleveland often has an electric crowd, which can be deadly to the Pistons. Detroit must control the rebounds and keep LeBron James from getting into the open court, as he is difficult enough to defend in the half court game. Detroit’s own post players will have to control the paint to wear down Cleveland’s defense, as well as bruise and batter any Cavs guards who barge into the lane while the Pistons D-up. It will be a long, brutal series, and the Pistons have all the opportunity to advance to the NBA Finals again, however they must avoid their arrogance and play with a consistent intensity, something they did not do in the second round against the Bulls.
Other News:
- Tracy McGrady wears a kilt and blocks a sheep toss. Awesome.
- Steve Nash, MVP Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Amare Stoudemire were named to this year’s All-NBA team.
- The NBA needs to simmer down and let the players play. Some of these decisions and suspensions are ridiculous. If anything is ruining the integrity of the game, it is the poor decision-making of the league’s front office.
1 Comment
May 19, 2007 at 1:52 am
I expect Cleveland to run all over Detroit this year and take it all. Cleveland is a better team, has better players and more stars. They are destined. It doesn’t matter about them going back and fourth all year in their 1st and 2nd place standings in their division. Cleveland is just better and will run all over Detroit. But enough about the Indians and Tigers.
The Pistons are tough but last year the Cavs gave them all they could handle. This year the Pistons are without any spectacular players including Wallace. The Cavs are more experienced and more hungry than they were last year. The Pistons, although have played great all year, won’t beat the Cavs this year. The Cavs have a great defense which is all that the NBA playoffs seem to be about anymore. I expect the Cavs to be able to win on the road. They took two in Washington and two in New Jersey. And although the four road wins were against only the Wizards and the Nets, they were still four road wins in the NBA at playoff time. Cavs in 6.